Reminder to keep scripts for ALL meds current!

[dirtyhippiegirl, BSN, RN]

Just a reminder to everyone: keep scripts for ALL possible medications that you may or could take up to date with your program. This includes OTC. I recently had a false positive for THC -- due to daily PPI use for chronic stomach ulcers and gastritis. My script for Prevacid was on file and current with my monitoring program. My UA was immediately bumped to a high level of processing and came back negative.

This is the second false positive that I have had while in the program. My first was for PCP while taking lamictal for bipolar disorder.

[Beth,rn]

Thanks for the info! Just had my eval today í ½í¸ž Definitely taking all the advice I can get.

[dtanna]

Hmm... I have been taking prevacid, prilosec, and nexium for years and have never had a false positive for THC which is my drug of choice and I am tested sometimes 2x a week. I take 2 different PPI's a day and have never even failed the ASSAY test to be sent for quantification. That's why they split the sample into two containers, one for the instant ASSAY and one for GC/MS confirmation if you fail.

[dirtyhippiegirl, BSN, RN]

My body seems to enjoy converting the meds I take into false positives. I had a false positive for PCP early on, too, while taking lamictal.

Further GC/MS testing is not a guarantee in my state's program.

[jdub6]

I think this may be state dependant. My state automatically sends any positive for GCMS before reporting the result, thus, perhaps less false positives? Just a theory (well, the first part I know for a fact. The theory is whether it cuts the false positives but I have taken lamictal along with numerous prescription meds during my program and never once had a false positive and my program tests more than any others that I've read about here or heard about and even more than the Board in this state for those on formal consent orders.)